Blog Tour: Secrets Kept Review and Giveaway

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

The Secrets Kept Tour!

This tour will explore the World of Nälu: 
Where a story with adventure, action, love, betrayal, and a quest takes place.
We will get to visit sites, learn more about the cuisine, and be introduced to some elves, dwarves, and shape-shifters, at the least.

Secrets KeptSecrets Kept 
by JL Mbewe
YA Fantasy
October 30th 2013 by AltWit Press

With a curse, she will build an army.
With the dagger, she will undo the last sacrifice.
But first the sorceress must find the secret keeper.


Torn from her homeland and thrust into a betrothal against her wishes, Ayianna learns her family has a deadly secret that now has her on the run. She joins forces with Kael, an embittered half-elf, and Saeed, an elderly High Guardian, to seek answers to her father’s death, the destruction of Dagmar, and the plains people’s bizarre behavior.

Ayianna discovers there is more at stake here than just her mother’s disappearance and her familial duty to her betrothed. The sorceress has cursed the plains people, and it is a race against time to release them before the sorceress resurrects an ancient evil.



Character Description

Prince Vian, Son of King Valdamar of Badara, has lived a sheltered life of ease, but his father is distant, and the servants whisper behind his back. Alone, he finds friendship with Desmond, hoping to win the approval of his father when the time comes for him to take the throne.

  



My Review

I wasn't sure what exactly to expect when I started reading Secrets Kept. I was hoping to get a chance to read Desert Rose first, but didn't (I'll still be reading it later). The story began as many Fantasy stories, and some of my favorites do, in a small town. However, the main characters and story-line never seems to stay there.

I definitely found the title a perfect fit for the story. The MC, Ayianna, has had some secrets kept from her and then in turn must keep her own. She has a dream that is really only that. Her parents have another dream and she gives in to theirs with the hope that it will work out. Then something rather drastic and violent happens and nothing is the same.

I did get a little impatient with Ayianna and with Desmond at certain points. They both have seen death and destruction, yet they remain stubborn and are foolish when they shouldn't be. They also are the main cause of drama among their companions. I guess Vian was dramatic as well, but his was a more laid-back cocky drama and I really liked his character, especially because it seemed consistent and what you would expect from a prince. I also wanted to yell at Kael who should know better. I guess a little frustration can be good though, right? Of course I would get most frustrated with the characters when they were frustrated themselves, travelling days on end with their destination still well out of site and being plagued by things they didn't understand and feared. I'm just glad that things picked up, even though it wasn't in a good way (such as almost dying).

It was an interesting group of characters that had joined or fallen together. They all basically have the same goal: to stop the evil and protect Nalu and its people. I found them all interesting. The story was really about those that traveled with Ayianna though. I wasn't sure who I could trust for sure besides Ayianna and Kael. As I figured that out I got a little upset with how naive Ayianna really was. I wanted her to be much more observant and smart about things, but some of that stemmed from how her parents had raised her.

Like a lot of Fantasy novels, there were a lot of descriptions and quite a few travels from here to there without a whole lot going on. Then something would happen. They would get attacked or find something and then there would be all-out fighting and action. They had a lot of enemies, some of which they thought were friends. There is the threat of war, a war that has really already begun, that no one has seen coming. There are certain things that must be done to prepare as best they can.

Overall, this was a good story. I really wanted to understand more about the prophecy and dagger and the role that Ayianna and her fellow companions will play, but I'll have to wait until the next book to learn more.

Content: There was some suggestive content and some violence.
Source: From the author, which did not affect my review in any way.


desert-rose-3web
FREE right now on Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
Desert Rose
(A Tale of Nälu #1)


Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000026_00013]
NOW AVAILABLE: Tales of  Nälu (all three short stories in paperback) on Amazon!


Living life balanced between reality and dreams.

JL Mbewe - AuthorWriting as J. L. Mbewe, Jennette is an author, artist, mother, wife, but not always in that order. Born and raised in Minnesota, she now braves the heat of Texas, but pines for the Northern Lights and the lakes of home every autumn. She loves trying to capture the abstract and make it concrete. She has two short stories published in The Clockwork Dragon anthology, and is busily creating worlds inhabited by all sorts of fantasy creatures and characters, all questing about and discovering true love amid lots of peril. Her debut novel Secrets Kept and her short stories set in the world of Nälu: Desert Rose, Dragon Thief, and Indestructible are now available. She is currently living her second childhood with a wonderful husband and two precious children who don’t seem to mind her eclectic collections of rocks, shells, and books, among other things.

For more information about her journey as a writer mama and all things creative please visit her at:



Tour-Wide Giveaway


Kindle Fire Prize Pack (US/CAN ONLY), which includes:
- Kindle Fire
- Chocolate truffles
- Paper backs of Secrets Kept and Tales of Nälu
- Awesome swag (key chain, bookmark, and poster)
Ends January 7, 2014
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Follow the tour!

12/9: Launch on Colorimetry and Tressa's Wishful Endings
12/12: fundinmental
12/15: Colorimetry
12/23: alwaysjoart
12/29: Fictionally
12/31: Grand Finale


Are you a blogger and want to receive information about new tours? Go HERE.
Are you an author or publisher and would like to have us organize a tour? Go HERE.

No comments

Post a Comment

I love comments! I try to read and reply to them all. Feel free to agree or disagree and generally share your thoughts with me.